I'm Every Woman
Encyclopedia
"I'm Every Woman" is a hit song recorded by Chaka Khan
Chaka Khan
Chaka Khan , frequently known as the Queen of Funk, is a 10-time Grammy Award winning American singer-songwriter who gained fame in the 1970s as the frontwoman and focal point of the funk band Rufus. While still a member of the group in 1978, Khan embarked on a successful solo career...

 in 1978. It was Chaka Khan's first hit outside of her recordings with funk band Rufus
Rufus (band)
Rufus was an American funk band from Chicago, Illinois best known for launching the career of lead singer Chaka Khan. They had several hits throughout their career, including "Tell Me Something Good," "Sweet Thing," and "Ain't Nobody."-Origins:...

; the song was included on her platinum debut solo album Chaka
Chaka (1978 album)
Chaka is the debut solo album by American R&B/funk singer Chaka Khan, released on the Warner Bros. Records label in 1978.- Overview :Two singles were released from Chaka, the first being her anthemic solo debut "I'm Every Woman", one of Khan's signature tunes alongside "Ain't Nobody" and "I Feel...

. Produced by Arif Mardin
Arif Mardin
Arif Mardin was a Turkish-American music producer, who worked with hundreds of artists across many different styles of music, including jazz, rock, soul, disco, and country...

 and written by successful songwriting team Nickolas Ashford and Valerie Simpson
Ashford & Simpson
Nickolas Ashford , and Valerie Simpson , were a husband and wife songwriting/production team and recording artists....

, the soul/disco song reached number twenty-one on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...

, number eleven on the UK Singles Chart
UK Singles Chart
The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...

 and hit number one on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs
Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs
Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs, is a chart released weekly by Billboard in the United States.The chart, initiated in 1942, is used to track the success of popular music songs in urban, or primarily African American, venues. Dominated over the years at various times by jazz, rhythm and blues, doo-wop, soul,...

. On the disco chart, the single peaked at number thirty.

The single established Chaka's career outside of the group Rufus, whom she would leave after their next album Masterjam
Masterjam
Masterjam is the eighth studio album by funk band Rufus , their debut on the MCA Records label following their purchase and dissolution of ABC Records, released in 1979.-History:...

came out at the end of 1979. A music video
Music video
A music video or song video is a short film integrating a song and imagery, produced for promotional or artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a marketing device intended to promote the sale of music recordings...

 was produced for Khan's version of "I'm Every Woman" at a time when the value of promotional films was increasing . The video, which features five dancing Chakas dressed in various outfits to represent "every woman," was made a few years before the onset of mainstream coverage of "music promos
Music video
A music video or song video is a short film integrating a song and imagery, produced for promotional or artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a marketing device intended to promote the sale of music recordings...

" through such outlets as MTV
MTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....

, VH1
VH1
VH1 or Vh1 is an American cable television network based in New York City. Launched on January 1, 1985 in the old space of Turner Broadcasting's short-lived Cable Music Channel, the original purpose of the channel was to build on the success of MTV by playing music videos, but targeting a slightly...

, and BET
Black Entertainment Television
Black Entertainment Television is an American, Viacom-owned cable network based in Washington, D.C.. Currently viewed in more than 90 million homes worldwide, it is the most prominent television network targeting young Black-American audiences. The network was launched on January 25, 1980, by its...

.

The track was remixed and re-released in 1989 for Khan's remix album Life is a Dance - The Remix Project
Life is a Dance - The Remix Project
Life is a Dance: The Remix Project is a remix album of recordings by American R&B/funk singer Chaka Khan released by the Warner Bros. Records label in 1989...

; this mix reached number 8 in the UK. Whitney Houston
Whitney Houston
Whitney Elizabeth Houston is an American singer, actress, producer and a former model. Houston is the most awarded female act of all time, according to Guinness World Records, and her list of awards include 1 Emmy Award, 6 Grammy Awards, 30 Billboard Music Awards, 22 American Music Awards, among...

 (who sang backup vocals on Khan's debut album and her 1980 follow-up Naughty), would later record the song in 1992 with production by David Cole
David Cole (producer)
David Cole was a songwriter and record producer, and was one half of the dance-music duo C+C Music Factory, which he founded with musical partner Robert Clivillés....

 and Robert Clivillés
Robert Clivillés
Robert Clivillés is a record producer, songwriter, arranger, music video director most noted for his work with C+C Music Factory, a group he founded with musical partner David Cole...

, and vocals produced by Narada Michael Walden
Narada Michael Walden
Narada Michael Walden is an American producer, drummer, singer, and songwriter. He was given the name Narada by guru Sri Chinmoy in the early 1970s and his musical career spans three decades, in which he was awarded several gold, platinum and multi-platinum awards...

, turning it into a hit for a new generation.

Charts

Chart (1978) Peak
position
UK Singles Chart 11
U.S. Billboard Hot 100 21
U.S. Billboard Hot Soul Singles 1
Chart (1989) Peak
position
UK Singles Chart 8

Credits

  • Lead and background vocals by Chaka Khan
    Chaka Khan
    Chaka Khan , frequently known as the Queen of Funk, is a 10-time Grammy Award winning American singer-songwriter who gained fame in the 1970s as the frontwoman and focal point of the funk band Rufus. While still a member of the group in 1978, Khan embarked on a successful solo career...

  • Background vocals by Whitney Houston
    Whitney Houston
    Whitney Elizabeth Houston is an American singer, actress, producer and a former model. Houston is the most awarded female act of all time, according to Guinness World Records, and her list of awards include 1 Emmy Award, 6 Grammy Awards, 30 Billboard Music Awards, 22 American Music Awards, among...

    , Will Lee
    Will Lee (bassist)
    Will Lee aka William Franklin Lee IV is an American musician and bassist, best known for his work on the CBS television program The Late Show with David Letterman as part of the CBS Orchestra....

     and Hamish Stuart
    Hamish Stuart
    Hamish Stuart is a guitarist, bassist, singer, composer and record producer.- Biography :Stuart had recorded a couple of singles with his first band, the Dream Police, before he was invited to join the recently formed Average White Band in June 1972.A member of AWB from 1972 to 1982, he went on to...

  • Produced by Arif Mardin
    Arif Mardin
    Arif Mardin was a Turkish-American music producer, who worked with hundreds of artists across many different styles of music, including jazz, rock, soul, disco, and country...


Whitney Houston version

Whitney Houston
Whitney Houston
Whitney Elizabeth Houston is an American singer, actress, producer and a former model. Houston is the most awarded female act of all time, according to Guinness World Records, and her list of awards include 1 Emmy Award, 6 Grammy Awards, 30 Billboard Music Awards, 22 American Music Awards, among...

 recorded the song for The Bodyguard: Original Soundtrack Album. Houston's version was produced by Narada Michael Walden
Narada Michael Walden
Narada Michael Walden is an American producer, drummer, singer, and songwriter. He was given the name Narada by guru Sri Chinmoy in the early 1970s and his musical career spans three decades, in which he was awarded several gold, platinum and multi-platinum awards...

, with additional production by David Cole
David Cole (producer)
David Cole was a songwriter and record producer, and was one half of the dance-music duo C+C Music Factory, which he founded with musical partner Robert Clivillés....

 and Robert Clivillés
Robert Clivillés
Robert Clivillés is a record producer, songwriter, arranger, music video director most noted for his work with C+C Music Factory, a group he founded with musical partner David Cole...

. It was released as the soundtrack's second single in January 1993.

Release

When "I'm Every Woman" was released, Houston's preceding single, "I Will Always Love You", was still at number 1 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...

 (it remained there for eight more weeks). Houston's version of "I'm Every Woman" would become a bigger hit than the original, peaking at number four on the Billboard Hot 100 in just its seventh and eighth week of release; remaining in the top 40 for nineteen weeks. The song became number one on the Billboard
Billboard (magazine)
Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...

 Hot Dance Club Play chart, reached number five on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs
Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs
Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs, is a chart released weekly by Billboard in the United States.The chart, initiated in 1942, is used to track the success of popular music songs in urban, or primarily African American, venues. Dominated over the years at various times by jazz, rhythm and blues, doo-wop, soul,...

 chart, and cracked the top 40 on the Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks chart. Houston's cover was also a bigger international hit than the original version as it peaked within the top 5 in the UK and several other countries, and the top 20 in France, Australia, Germany, Sweden and Switzerland.

As a tribute to Chaka Khan, Whitney Houston proclaims Khan's name towards the end of the song.

Music video

The music video was directed by Randee St. Nicholas, and features a very pregnant Houston performing the song, while scenes from The Bodyguard
The Bodyguard
The Bodyguard is a 1992 American romantic-thriller film starring Kevin Costner and Whitney Houston. Costner stars as a former Secret Service Agent turned bodyguard who is hired to protect Houston's character, a music star, from an unknown stalker. Lawrence Kasdan wrote the film in the 1970s,...

are intercut into the clip. The video also features cameo appearances by Cissy Houston
Cissy Houston
Emily "Cissy" Houston is a Grammy Award–winning American soul and gospel singer. She led a very successful career as a backup singer for such artists as Elvis Presley, Mahalia Jackson, Wishbone Ash and Aretha Franklin, and is now primarily a solo artist...

 (Houston's mother), as well as by Chaka Khan
Chaka Khan
Chaka Khan , frequently known as the Queen of Funk, is a 10-time Grammy Award winning American singer-songwriter who gained fame in the 1970s as the frontwoman and focal point of the funk band Rufus. While still a member of the group in 1978, Khan embarked on a successful solo career...

, Valerie Simpson, and labelmates TLC
TLC (band)
TLC is an American musical trio whose repertoire spanned R&B, hip-hop, soul, funk, and new jack swing. Originally consisting of singer Tionne "T-Boz" Watkins, rapper-singer Lisa "Left Eye" Lopes and singer Rozonda "Chilli" Thomas it found success in the 1990s while also enduring a series of spats...

. The song won Houston a NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Music Video
NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Music Video
The NAACP Image Award winners for Outstanding Music Video:-Stats:As of the 2010 ceremony, Alicia Keys has the most wins with 3. Whitney Houston, R. Kelly & Will Smith have 2 wins.*Most Nominations**1. Alicia Keys - 8 nominations...

, and received a Grammy Award
Grammy Award
A Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...

 nomination in 1994 for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance
Grammy Award for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance
The Grammy Award for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance was an honor presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards, to female recording artists for quality R&B songs...

.

Formats and track listings

CD single
  1. "I'm Every Woman" – 4:45
  2. "Who Do You Love" – 3:55


European CD maxi-single
  1. "I'm Every Woman" (7" single) – 4:44
  2. "I'm Every Woman" (Clivillés & Cole House Mix I) – 10:37
  3. "I'm Every Woman" (a cappella
    A cappella
    A cappella music is specifically solo or group singing without instrumental sound, or a piece intended to be performed in this way. It is the opposite of cantata, which is accompanied singing. A cappella was originally intended to differentiate between Renaissance polyphony and Baroque concertato...

     mix) – 4:27


UK CD maxi-single
  1. "I'm Every Woman" (7" single) – 4:44
  2. "I'm Every Woman" (Every Woman's House/Club Mix Radio Edit) – 4:40
  3. "I'm Every Woman" (Clivillés & Cole House Mix I) – 10:37
  4. "I'm Every Woman" (Every Woman's House/Club Mix) – 10:14
  5. "I'm Every Woman" (Every Woman's Beat) – 4:11
  6. "I'm Every Woman" (a cappella mix) – 4:27


U.S. CD maxi-single
  1. "I'm Every Woman" (Every Woman's House/Club Mix Radio Edit) – 4:40
  2. "I'm Every Woman" (album version) – 4:45
  3. "I'm Every Woman" (Every Woman's House/Club Mix) – 10:14
  4. "I'm Every Woman" (Clivillés & Cole House Mix I) – 10:37
  5. "I'm Every Woman" (Clivillés & Cole House Mix II) – 10:54
  6. "Who Do You Love" – 3:55


U.S. 12" maxi-single
  1. "I'm Every Woman" (Every Woman's House/Club Mix) – 10:14
  2. "I'm Every Woman" (Every Woman's Beat) – 4:11
  3. "I'm Every Woman" (Clivillés & Cole House Mix I) - 10:37
  4. "I'm Every Woman" (Clivillés & Cole House Mix II) - 10:54
  5. "I'm Every Woman" (The C & C Dub) – 10:03
  6. "I'm Every Woman" (a cappella mix) – 4:27

Chart positions

Chart (1993) Peak
position
Australian Singles Chart 11
Austrian Singles Chart 19
Belgian Singles Chart 2
Dutch Singles Chart 3
French Singles Chart 11
German Singles Chart 13
Ireland (IRMA
Irish Recorded Music Association
Irish Recorded Music Association is the Irish record industry association. IRMA is a non-profit association set up to manage and control the music industry in the Republic of Ireland.-Goals and activities:...

)
4
Italian Singles Chart 6
New Zealand Singles Chart 5
Spain (AFYVE) 3
Swedish Singles Chart 7
Swiss Singles Chart 18
UK Singles Chart 4
US Billboard Hot 100 4
US Billboard Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks 26
US Billboard Hot Dance Club Play 1
US Billboard Hot R&B Singles 5


Year-end charts

Chart (1993) Position
Dutch Singles Chart 56
U.S. Billboard Hot 100 39
U.S. Dance/Club-Play Singles 10
U.S. Pop Singles 39
U.S. R&B Singles 35


Chart procession and succession

Covers

  • In the 1993-1994 season, an instrumental cover of this song was used as the theme song for The Oprah Winfrey Show
    The Oprah Winfrey Show
    The Oprah Winfrey Show is an American syndicated talk show hosted and produced by its namesake Oprah Winfrey. It ran nationally for 25 seasons beginning in 1986, before concluding in 2011. It is the highest-rated talk show in American television history....

    .
  • In 1999, Whitney Houston
    Whitney Houston
    Whitney Elizabeth Houston is an American singer, actress, producer and a former model. Houston is the most awarded female act of all time, according to Guinness World Records, and her list of awards include 1 Emmy Award, 6 Grammy Awards, 30 Billboard Music Awards, 22 American Music Awards, among...

     performed the hit song live as a duet with Chaka Khan
    Chaka Khan
    Chaka Khan , frequently known as the Queen of Funk, is a 10-time Grammy Award winning American singer-songwriter who gained fame in the 1970s as the frontwoman and focal point of the funk band Rufus. While still a member of the group in 1978, Khan embarked on a successful solo career...

     on VH1 Divas
    VH1 Divas
    In 1998, VH1 debuted the first annual VH1 Divas concert. VH1 Divas Live was created to support the channel's Save The Music Foundation and subsequent concerts in the series have also benefited that foundation. The VH1 Divas concerts aired annually from 1998 to 2004. After a five year hiatus, the...

    .
  • In 2004, Girls Aloud
    Girls Aloud
    Girls Aloud are a British and Irish pop girl group based in London. They were created through the ITV1 talent show Popstars The Rivals in 2002. The group consists of Cheryl Cole , Nadine Coyle, Sarah Harding, Nicola Roberts and Kimberley Walsh. They are signed to Fascination Records, a Polydor...

     performed their version in a Discomania TV show.
  • Tina Arena
    Tina Arena
    Filippina Lydia "Tina" Arena is an Australian singer, songwriter and musical theatre actress. She has won several awards, most notably 6 ARIA Awards and in both 1996 and 2000 she received the World Music Award for the world's best selling Australian artist...

     performed a duet of the song with Natasha St-Pier
    Natasha St-Pier
    Natasha St Pier is a Canadian pop singer.-Career:Natasha St Pier released her first album, Émergence, in 1996, produced by composer/producer Steve Barakatt...

     at La fête de la musique in Paris
    Paris
    Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...

     in early 2006.
  • In 2006, it was recorded in the fifth season
    American Idol (season 5)
    The fifth season of American Idol began on January 17, 2006 and concluded on May 24, 2006. Randy Jackson, Paula Abdul and Simon Cowell returned to judge, and Ryan Seacrest returned to host. It is the most successful season to date ratings-wise and also with 18 contestants getting record deals -...

     of American Idol
    American Idol
    American Idol, titled American Idol: The Search for a Superstar for the first season, is a reality television singing competition created by Simon Fuller and produced by FremantleMedia North America and 19 Entertainment...

    by Mandisa
    Mandisa
    Mandisa Hundley is an American gospel singer, who was the ninth-place finalist in the fifth season of American Idol.-Early life:...

    , and put on the album American Idol Season 5: Encores
    American Idol Season 5: Encores
    American Idol Season 5: Encores is compilation album released on May 23, 2006 and contains one cover song from each of the top 12 finalists during season 5 of the television show American Idol...

    .
  • The song has been performed several times on American Idol
    American Idol
    American Idol, titled American Idol: The Search for a Superstar for the first season, is a reality television singing competition created by Simon Fuller and produced by FremantleMedia North America and 19 Entertainment...

    ; by Trenyce
    Trenyce
    Lashundra Trenyce Cobbins , known professionally as Trenyce, is an American singer and was a finalist for the second season of American Idol in 2003, finishing in fifth place.- Biography:...

    , Vonzell Solomon
    Vonzell Solomon
    Vonzell Monique Solomon , nicknamed Baby V, is an American singer and aspiring actress who finished in third place in the fourth season of the televised singing competition American Idol. She also appeared in the independent movie Still Green.-Biography:Born in Baxley, Georgia, Solomon's family...

    , Mandisa
    Mandisa
    Mandisa Hundley is an American gospel singer, who was the ninth-place finalist in the fifth season of American Idol.-Early life:...

    , Carly Smithson
    Carly Smithson
    Carly Smithson is an Irish soul/pop rock singer-songwriter and actress from San Diego, California who was the sixth place finalist on the seventh season of American Idol. In 2001, Smithson released her first studio album for MCA Records called Ultimate High. Smithson was dropped from the record...

     (for her second audition) and Lil Rounds
    Lil Rounds
    Lil Rounds is an American singer from Memphis, Tennessee, who was the seventh place finalist on the eighth season of American Idol. Following the conclusion of Idol, Rounds was signed to a record deal with Bungalo Records. Her debut album was to be released in 2010 but has been pushed back for a...

    .
  • The song was performed on Australian Idol
    Australian Idol
    Australian Idol is a Logie Award-winning Australian singing competition, which began its first season on July 2003 and ended its run in November 2009. As part of the Idol franchise, Australian Idol originated from the reality program Pop Idol, which was created by British entertainment executive...

    in 2005, on the Final 5 70's week, by eventual runner up Emily Williams
    Emily Williams
    Emily Williams , is a New Zealand-born Australian singer-songwriter, who rose to fame on the third season of Australian Idol in 2005, and became runner-up of the season...

    . She scored her third touchdown from judge Mark Holden
    Mark Holden
    Mark Holden is an Australian singer, television personality and barrister. He was one of a panel of three judges on the television series Australian Idol.-Acting career:...

     after this performance and sang a reprise of this song at the grand final of that season.
  • Edyta Górniak
    Edyta Górniak
    Edyta Górniak is one of the most popular female singers from Poland.- Beginnings :At the age of 14 Górniak formed a band and was playing at private parties and evening dances. After taking singing lessons, in 1989, aged 16, she gave her first public appearance on a Polish television talent show...

     performed the song live on the final episode of the 11th season of Polish
    Poland
    Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...

     edition of Dancing with the Stars
    Taniec z Gwiazdami
    Taniec z gwiazdami is a Polish light entertainment reality television series broadcast by TVN. It is the Polish version of the BBC's popular Dancing with the Stars / Strictly Come Dancing franchise which has been sold to more than 30 countries worldwide.The 1st season of Taniec z gwiazdami aired...

    on June 13, 2010.
  • Niamh Kavanagh
    Niamh Kavanagh
    Niamh Kavanagh is an Irish singer and winner of the Eurovision Song Contest 1993.Kavanagh is perhaps best known for winning Eurovision Song Contest 1993, held in Millstreet, County Cork, Ireland. She sang "In Your Eyes" to clinch a second consecutive win for Ireland in the Eurovision Song Contest;...

    , Paula Seling
    Paula Seling
    Paula Seling is a Romanian singer, composer, and radio DJ.She represented Romania in the Eurovision Song Contest 2010, with Ovidiu Cernăuțeanu, with the song "Playing with Fire". They finished third in the final.-Early life:...

     and Chiara Siracusa covered live the song at the Romanian National Final
    Romania in the Eurovision Song Contest
    Romania has participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 13 times, debuting in the 1994 contest, with their best position being 3rd, achieving this at the 2005 and 2010 contests....

     for the Eurovision Song Contest 2011
    Eurovision Song Contest 2011
    The Eurovision Song Contest 2011 was the 56th annual Eurovision Song Contest and was won by Eldar & Nigar performing "Running Scared" for Azerbaijan. The event took place in the Esprit Arena in Düsseldorf, Germany, following Germany's win in the previous year...

    , on New Year's Eve.
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